Page 3 of See You Again

What choice did he have? He would rather be skinned alive than admit to his family that the thought of asking her for help made him ill.

So, he had.

And been turned down.

Humiliating.

“Sorry. Madison and Camellia don’t share their work.”

James had to consciously relax his jaw at the memory.

“No way!” Annie’s face lit up. “I love that podcast.”

“You listen to that crap?”

Annie made a face. “It’s not crap. It’s fantastic! Madison does such an amazing job, and her co-host Camellia is really good, too. She’s doing most of the research on their latest case.”

“Camellia knows the family, right?” The barback leaned a hip against the bar.

James ground his teeth.

“Yeah,” Annie took a sip of her water. “Camellia is even more passionate than usual about this one. She’s pushing for new DNA testing.”

“I haven’t heard the latest episode. Did Camellia say if the police had given her the files she’d asked for?”

James glowered at his glass. The muscles in his neck corkscrewed tighter every time one of the women said her name.

“Not yet,” Annie said. “She’s still waiting for them to process the paperwork. Camellia won’t give up, though.”

James snorted.

“What?” Annie crossed her arms.

“Nothing.” James lifted his chin at his now empty glass, and Annie refilled it without comment. “I’ve just never understood people’s obsession with true crime. I’ve seen thousands of crime scene photos and spoken to hundreds of victims. How is someone else’s suffering entertainment?”

Another burst of hilarity rang out, and James grit his teeth so hard he thought he might have cracked a molar.

“They are definitely over that Kip guy, though. He’s been super handsy all night,” the barback said, further cementing James’s disdain of the man.

Wait…. They?

Annie frowned. “Do we need to intervene?”

The barback glanced over her shoulder at the group. “I don’t think so. Looks like they’re leaving.”

James’s eyes reluctantly swung to the group. A few of the crowd were now standing, and as they parted, he saw Kip Jordan reach around the waist of the woman next to him. She clearly hadn’t been expecting the move because, when he tugged her closer, she stumbled into him, her dark hair falling from the clip that held it up, making the jackass laugh harder.

James’s anger ticked up, and his chest grew tight. The chef had at least twelve inches on the petite woman, and though his build was more lean than muscular, it was clear he was physically holding her trapped against him. He watched as Kip’s hand crept down the woman’s red dress to cup her ass.

It isn’t her. The hair isn’t long enough. Atlanta is a big city. There are lots of curvy, petite brunettes.

The woman jumped and spun to face Kip, her full, red lips pressed into a tight line before they tipped up into a pained smile.

James stopped breathing, and for a moment, it felt as if the Earth stopped spinning on its axis and he was struggling to keep his balance.

He should have been prepared. After all, he’d had twelve years to imagine this moment.

In slow motion, the woman stepped out of range of the chef and tucked her hands behind her back, barely avoiding the man’s efforts to catch them. James wanted to tear his eyes away, but it was as if a magnetic force had caught him and he couldn’t.

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